Hand-driven water craft

ABSTRACT

A hand-driven water craft having a narrow main hull portion cooperating with a submerged ballast member for the support of a generally flat deck partially overlying the hull and partially extending rearwardly therefrom as a cantilever, the hull supporting a hand crank propeller assembly for imparting forward propulsion to the craft, and the rear portion of the deck supporting a rudder adapted to be engaged by the feet of an operator lying in a prone position atop the deck.

United States Patent [1 1 Velandia Arevalo HAND-DRIVEN WATER CRAFT [76] Inventor: Luis Jorge Velandia Arevalo, Torres Los Andes, Apt. No. 6, Merida, Venezuela [22] Filed: Oct. 4, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 403,713

[52] US. Cl. 115/24 51 lm. (:1. B6311 16/04 [58] Field of Search 1l5/2l22, 115/22.l22.3, 23, 24, 24.3, 26.1; 1 14/ 121-] 26 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 901,862 10/1908 Zettcrberg A. 1l5/22.2 1,030,525 6/1912 Myers l15/22.3 1,321,267 ll/l9l9 Wilson 1l5/22.1 1,516,241 ll/l924 Osterhout l15/22.1

[451 Sept. 9, 1975 2.0451145 6/1936 Hansen 115/70 2,858,788 1 H1958 Lyman 114/126 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 22,953 6/1935 Australia l15/22.3

Primary Examiner Trygve M. Blix Assistant Examiner-Jesus D. Sotelo Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Imirie, Smiley & Linn 5 7 ABSTRACT A hand-driven water craft having a narrow main hull portion cooperating with a submerged ballast member for the support of a generally flat deck partially overlying the hull and partially extending rearwardly therefrom as a cantilever, the hull supporting a hand crank propeller assembly for imparting forward propulsion to the craft, and the rear portion of the deck supporting a rudder adapted to be engaged by the feet of an operator lying in a prone position atop the deck.

1 Claim, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTED SEP 91975 FIG] HAND-DRIVEN WATER CRAFT BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to sporting and/or recreational devices, and more particularly to a stable, hand-driven water craft for individual use.

2. Description of the Prior Art By virtue of recent increases in available leisure time, a need has arisen for various novel devices designed primarily for use in connection with recreational or sports activities. Water sports, for example, continue to be extremely popular, and have stimulated the development of numerous aquatic devices and small water craft for individual use.

Exemplary of such devices are row boats, canoes, surfboards and various portable and/or inflatable rafts, boats, and the like. Typically, such devices are propelled either by natural forces, as in the case of sail boats and surfboards, or by means of an inboard or outboard motor most commonly driven by an internal combustion engine. While such prior are systems have proven to be satisfactory for their intended purpose, a simple, lightweight, extremely stable water craft for individual use, operated by a hand-driven propeller has heretofore been unavailable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art in the construction of a small water craft in the form of a surfboard-like deck overlying a partial hull having the characteristics of extreme stability and maneuverability.

The present invention may be summarized in that a water craft comprises a highdraft hull portion, a deck member overlying the hull portion and extending rearwardly therefrom in cantilever-like manner, the deck supporting an individual in a prone position, a propulsion assembly in the hull portion including a propeller extending rearwardly therefrom and driven by means of a hand crank extending transversely through the hull, and a foot controlled rudder assembly pivotally mounted on the deck.

The present invention has numerous advantages over the prior art especially in view of its simplicity in design and construction, the capability of the same to be manufactured in lightweight form, the advantage of surfboard-like operation with substantially increased stability provided by the hull structure, and the ability of an operator to comfortably operate the propulsion assembly with his hands while simultaneously controlling the steering mechanism with his feet.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following descrip tion of the preferred embodiment when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a plan view, with parts broken away, of a preferred embodiment of a water craft in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the water craft of FIG. 1, and

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the water craft of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring more specifically to the drawing, the present invention includes a hull portion 10, having first and second generally upright side walls 12 and 14 diverging slightly from their juncture along their lower edges to form an apex 16. A ballast 18, in the form of a tapered, solid bar of suitable heavy material, such as a metal, is connected in spaced relation to apex 16 by a pair of supports 20 and 22. The ballast 18 may be removably mounted to enable substitution of different weights.

The forward edges of each of the side walls 12 and 14 define an angle of approximately 45 with respect to horizontal and are inwardly directed so as to meet along a generally straight line to form the prow 24 of the craft. Likewise, the rear edges of walls 12 and 14 extend from the bottom initially at an angle of approximately 45 and then in a substantially vertical direction and are joined together by a flat rear surface. The upper portions of walls 12 and 14 have outwardly offset parts 26 and which extend upwardly in a vertical direction where they are connected to support a flat, elongated deck member 30.

Deck 30 may be molded integrally with the hull 10 or may be constructed separately therefrom and connected by appropriate rivets, adhesives or the like. As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, deck 30 extends over the top of the hull 10 and continues rearwardly therefrom in a cantilever-like manner, with the forward portion of the deck tapering to a point conforming with the general shape of the prow of the hull. A generally flat bottom plate 32 (FIG. 2) is attached under the rear portion of deck 30 by suitable short side walls to define a generally rectangular cavity which may be empty or filled with a buoyant material such as foamed plastic.

The craft of the present invention further includes a hand-driven propulsion assembly in the form of a generally Z-shaped hand crank 34 having handles 35 offset from a central shaft 33, extending transversely through side walls 12 and 14 of hull 10. Fixedly secured on the central shaft 33 of crank 34 is a first gear wheel 36. Gear 36 cooperates with a smaller gear wheel 38 which is secured to a shaft 40 journalled for rotation between a pair of upright supports in hull 10.

Also secured to shaft 40 is a bevel gear 42 which cooperates with a smaller bevel gear 44 mounted on the end of a drive shaft 46. Shaft 46 extends through a suitable opening in the rear of hull 10 so as to drive a propeller 48 attached at the end thereof. The propulsion assembly enables the operator of the device to rotate gear 36 by means of the crank 34 whereupon such rotary motion is translated through the illustrated gear train to the propeller 48. Preferably, the ratio of the gear structure is such as to rotate the propeller at a high rate of speed relative to the rotational speed of the hand crank 34.

A flat, generally rectangular rudder 50 is mounted on the lower end of a support bar 52 which is journalled for pivotal movement through bottom plate 32 and deck 30 of the craft. A pair of pedals 54 and 56 extend from either side of the bar 52 generally perpendicular to the plane of the rudder 50 so as to facilitate rudder control and thus steering of the craft by the feet of an operator. A suitable cushion 58, of sponge rubber, for example, overlies the surface of deck 30 for the comfort of the operator and may be ribbed, as illustrated, or otherwise textured as desired.

It can be appreciated from the above, that the water craft according to the present invention will conveniently and comfortably accommodate an individual operator, in a prone position atop the cushion 58 of the deck 30. In such position, the operator may easily grasp the handles of the crank 34 so as to cause the rotation of propeller 48. At this same time, the operators feet may be placed in contact with pedals 54 and 56 for controlling the position of rudder 50. At this point, it is noted that hull is designed to be substantially completely submerged in operation such that the craft in use resembles a surfboard of similar device. By virtue of the complete submersion of the high draft, narrow hull, the craft is extremely stable and is not easily overturned. Further, by virtue of the design of the hull 10 along with ballast 18, the side-to-side rocking forces caused by the rotation of crank 34 are materially dampened and have relatively little effect.

The entire hull and deck portion may be molded in a unitary fashion from a suitable material, such as fiberglass, with the accommodating openings for crank 34 and propeller shaft 46 made water-tight so that both the hull and its cantilever deck provide buoyancy for supporting the operator on the surface of the water. Furthermore, in addition to the stabilization and buoyancy factors provided by the hull construction 10, the same effectively shields or encapsulates the gear drive assembly mechanism of the propeller 48 to avoid corrosion and similar undesirable effects of water exposure.

The pitch of the blades of propeller 48 is arranged to propel the craft forwardly when the crank 34 is operated in the direction of the arrow A, FIG. 2. The crank 34 is substantially submerged in the water when the device is in use so that movement of the crank handles 35 and the operators arms function in the manner of a swimmers stroke to assist in propelling the craft.

Inasmuch as the present invention is subject to many variations, modifications and changes in detail, it is intended that all matter contained in the foregoing description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim: 1. A water craft comprising a hull having first and second generally upright side walls directly joined along their lower edges to form an apex and diverging gradually therefrom to form a smooth walled, hydrodynamically streamlined, high draft structure to facilitate movement through the water and to inhibit wobbling of the craft in operation, deck means having a front portion mounted in superposition with said hull and a rear portion extending as a cantilever rearwardly of said hull, said front and rear portions being substantially equal in length whereby said hull extends downwardly from only the front half of the craft to facilitate turning thereof, said front portion of said deck means being contiguously joined to upper edges of said first and second side walls to form a unitary, watertight assemblage,

propulsion means including a hand crank, a crank shaft extending transversely through said hull, a propeller assembly including a drive shaft extending through a rear wall of said hull and carrying a propeller at its outer end, and means in said hull coupling rotary movement of said crank shaft to said drive shaft, and

foot controlled rudder means pivotally mounted at the rear of said deck means rear portion,

said rear portion of said deck means consisting of a hollow, watertight shell extending over the entire width of the craft to form a floatation chamber together with said front portion of said deck means and said hull. 

1. A water craft comprising a hull having first and second generally upright side walls directly joined along their lower edges to form an apex and diverging gradually therefrom to form a smooth walled, hydrodynamically streamlined, high draft structure to facilitate movement through the water and to inhibit wobbling of the craft in operation, deck means having a front portion mounted in superposition with said hull and a rear portion extending as a cantilever rearwardly of said hull, said front and rear portions being substantially equal in length whereby said hull extends downwardly from only the front half of the craft to facilitate turning thereof, said front portion of said deck means being contiguously joined to upper edges of said first and second side walls to form a unitary, watertight assemblage, propulsion means including a hand crank, a crank shaft extending transversely through said hull, a propeller assembly including a drive shaft extending through a rear wall of said hull and carrying a propeller at its outer end, and means in said hull coupling rotary movement of said crank shaft to said drive shaft, and foot controlled rudder means pivotally mounted at the rear of said deck means rear portion, said rear portion of said deck means consisting of a hollow, watertight shell extending over the entire width of the craft to form a floatation chamber together with said front portion of said deck means and said hull. 